The Project '69 Resto Thread - Uh-Ohh... 10-18-14

[bill440rt]

I think he has too many zero's in there....remember he trailered his pro-touring car to Carlisle




Love ya bro

Too funny!    Maybe his insurance only allows 500 miles per year?    Sorry Bill, I couldn't resist the urge to pile on there.... Just bustin' chops!  

LMAO!     

Yeah, yeah. Here's a shot. Odo don't lie.    
Put about 600 miles on it this year.  

[bill440rt]

Well, got all the parts on. Just waiting for some lousy shock bushings to finish this whole thing up. If I had these stupid bushings this would be done by now. 
All the pieces fit real nice, & were pretty easy to install. Had to shave a bit off a tab on the edge of the frame rail so the the upper control arm would hang fully. Also a bit on the edge on the stock upper control arm bracket where the bolt goes thru on the mount relocator bracket. Hotchkis specifies in their instructions that this is quite common.

[1970Moparmann]

Simply awesome Bill!

[XS29L9B2]

very good job i am totaly fan

[PlainfieldCharger]

Great job Bill and quite fast too!! Thats what i call GSD... Even better is you got some time to get it out on the road still this year!

[bill440rt]

Here's a little progress news, from the you gotta be shi**ing me facepalm files.      I don't know how I could even get so lucky  , but somehow I did.
This is for those who are thinking about swapping in some Hotchkis t-bars. If I save someone else from a simple headache, then it's worth it.

All the stuff made it onto the car nicely. It was really simple to install, basic stuff if you know your way around these suspensions.
Put the t-bars in as usual, let the adjuster bolt out & the control arms hang. Let the car on the ground and the front end is standing up like a 4x4. OK, so I'll back the adjuster bolt down. Did that, and with the bolt completely out the front is still pointing at the sky. 
So, they must have been indexed wrong, right? Back out they went & moved them one notch. Now, the front end is slammed on the ground. Adjuster bolt completely threaded in, and it does absolutely nothing.     

One guy at Hotchkis says flip them around, put the logo in the back instead of the front. Tried that, both settings in the hexes, result is still the same. 
Took them out AGAIN, now they request pictures of the bars resting on the floor to check the clocking of the hexes. Now, despite my best to keep the finish protected they're starting to look a little beat. These are brand-new bars. 

He tells me to try them again in the car. I know it ain't gonna work, been there done that several times now.
So I call Hotchkis again & get another rep on the phone. I just start explaining the problem when he says he knows exactly what I'm talking about.
He says, "Flip them side to side. Put the L bar on the passenger side & the R bar on the driver's side. We had a small run go out that was mislabeled. Sorry."   
( You gotta be shi**ing me... )   

I was told maybe less than 10 sets made it out to the public with the wrong markings.   
I'm in the process of trying to get correct bars now, these are brand new bars that are labelled wrong & are now scratched up from trial & error. Such a simple answer yet so frustrating to figure out. 
It'll be a few more weeks until I get the replacement bars, so it'll be laid up a little while longer.

So, if anyone else has a problem with these bars (too high, or too low, with no adjustment possible), swap them side to side. 

[b5blue]

Now why wouldn't they have mentioned this before hand? A simple heads up just in case!  I'd be pissed also Bill!

[PlainfieldCharger]

Doesn't take much to add a little memo into the paper worK Nothing like installing and uninstalling and installing the same parts. 

[bill440rt]

The bars came back out tonite for the last time, they'll be sent back to Hotchkis tomorrow. 

Not pissed at all, just got frustrated. Something so simple yet hard to figure out because of a mis-stamping.
Hotchkis has a great reputation, and have been excellent. Got the UPS return label from them today, no return cost or restocking fee, and I should have the new bars within a week or two. They are out of stock but have a new run coming in. 

[bill440rt]

Just a little update to this thread.
As promised, Hotchkis came through with a new set of replacement torsion bars correctly marked. They went in fast, no problems. Perfect ride height, and plenty of adjustment now on the torsion bar adjuster.
Hotchkis has always been a great company to deal with from my experience. 

Of course, the roads in my area are salted, so I decided to pack it up for winter. A wheel alignment & test drive will unfortunately have to wait until spring.   

[resq302]

Bill,

Even with the rains that we've had before Christmas, you still have salt on your roads?  The biggest issue we have up in my town is that once the salt is washed away, the grit they put down is still left behind and will destroy your paint on the lower part of the car.  Not to mention causing you to slide around corners like Bo and Luke Duke!  lol

[Charger-Bodie]

Better to be safe than sorry huh Bill?

[bill440rt]

Bill,

Even with the rains that we've had before Christmas, you still have salt on your roads?  The biggest issue we have up in my town is that once the salt is washed away, the grit they put down is still left behind and will destroy your paint on the lower part of the car.  Not to mention causing you to slide around corners like Bo and Luke Duke!  lol

It's done until spring. The telltale sign is when the daily's get dirty fast because of the crap on the roads.

Better to be safe than sorry huh Bill?

Absolutely, Brian!